2005 SATURN VUE brake

Daytime Running Lamps (DRL)
Daytime Running Lamps (DRL) can make it easier for
others to see the front of your vehicle during the
day. DRL can be helpful in many different driving
conditions, but they can be especially helpful in the short
periods after dawn and before sunset. Fully functional
daytime running lamps are required on all vehicles
rst sold in Canada.
The DRL system will make your low-beam headlamps
come on at a reduced brightness in daylight when
the following conditions are met:
The ignition is on,
the exterior lamp band is in AUTO,
the transaxle is not in PARK (P),
the light sensor determines it is daytime, and
the parking brake is released.When the DRL are on, the high-beam headlamps will be
on at a reduced brightness. The taillamps, sidemarker
and other lamps will not be on. The instrument panel will
not be lit up either.
When you turn the exterior lamp band to the headlamp
position, your regular headlamps will come on. The
other lamps that come on with your headlamps will also
come on.
When you turn off the headlamps, the regular lamps will
go off, and your high-beam headlamps will come on
to the reduced brightness.
To idle your vehicle with the DRL off, move the shift
lever to PARK (P). The DRL will stay off until you move
the shift lever out of PARK (P). To override the DRL
on manual transaxle vehicles, you must set the parking
brake while the ignition is off and then start your
vehicle. The DRL will stay off until you release the
parking brake.
As with any vehicle, you should turn on the regular
headlamp system when you need it.
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Up-Shift Light
Your vehicle may have up-shift light. When this light
comes on, you should shift to the next higher gear
if weather, road, and traffic conditions allow you to.
This light is located in
your instrument panel
cluster under your
temperature gage.
SeeManual Transaxle Operation on page 2-22for more
information.
Brake System Warning Light
Your vehicle’s hydraulic brake system is divided into
two parts. If one part isn’t working, the other part can still
work and stop you. For good braking, though, you
need both parts working well.
If the brake system warning light comes on, there is a
brake problem. Have your brake system inspected
right away.
The BRAKE light is located
in the instrument panel
cluster.
This light should come on briey when you turn the
ignition key to RUN. If it doesn’t come on then, have it
xed so it will be ready to warn you if there’s a problem.
When the ignition is on, the BRAKE light will come on
when you set your parking brake. The light will stay on if
your parking brake doesn’t release fully. A chime will
also sound if the parking brake is not fully released and
the vehicle is moving. If it stays on after your parking
brake is fully released, it means you have a brake
problem. United States Only
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The BRAKE light will also come on to indicate a low
brake uid level. SeeBrakes on page 5-36for
more information.
If the light comes on while you are driving, pull off the
road and stop carefully. You may notice that the pedal is
harder to push. Or, the pedal may go closer to the
oor. It may take longer to stop. If the light is still on,
have the vehicle towed for service. SeeTowing
Your Vehicle on page 4-50.
{CAUTION:
Your brake system may not be working
properly if the brake system warning light is
on. Driving with the brake system warning light
on can lead to an accident. If the light is still
on after you have pulled off the road and
stopped carefully, have the vehicle towed for
service.
Anti-Lock Brake System
Warning Light
If your vehicle has anti-lock brakes, the anti-lock brake
system (ABS) warning light will come on briey, as
a check, when you start your vehicle. If it doesn’t, have
your vehicle serviced so that the light works properly
when it needs to.
The ABS light is located
in the instrument panel
cluster, to the left of
the engine coolant
temperature gage.
If the light stays on longer than a few seconds after you
start your engine, or comes on and stays on while
you are driving, try resetting the system. To reset the
system, do the following:
1. If you are driving, pull over when it is safe to do so.
2. Be sure the vehicle is in PARK (P).
3. Turn off the ignition.
4. Then restart the engine.
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If the light remains on after resetting the system or
comes on again while driving, your vehicle needs
service. If the ABS light is on, but the regular brake
system warning light is not on, you do not have anti-lock
brakes, but you still have regular brakes. Have your
vehicle serviced right away. If both brake lights are on,
you do not have anti-lock brakes, and there’s a
problem with your regular brakes as well. Have your
vehicle towed for service. SeeTowing Your Vehicle on
page 4-50.
Traction Control System (TCS)
Warning Light
Your vehicle may have a
traction control system
warning light. The traction
control system warning
light may come on for the
following reasons:
For vehicles equipped with the 2.2L L4 engine, turn
the system off by pressing the traction control
button located on the instrument panel above the
audio system. The warning light will come on
and stay on. To turn the system back on, press the
button again. The warning light should go off.
SeeTraction Control System (TCS) on page 4-10for
more information.
For vehicles equipped with the 3.5L V6 engine, the
traction control system will be turned off when the
shift lever is in REVERSE (R) or LOW (L). The
traction control system warning light will be displayed
on the instrument panel. The traction control system
can be activated again by selecting DRIVE (D) or
INTERMEDIATE (I).
If there’s an engine-related and brake system
problem that is specically related to traction control,
the traction control system will turn off and the
warning light will come on.
If the traction control system warning light comes on
and stays on for an extended period of time when the
system is turned on, your vehicle needs service.
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Your Driving, the Road, and Your Vehicle..........4-2
Driver Behavior..............................................4-2
Driving Environment........................................4-2
Vehicle Design...............................................4-3
Defensive Driving...........................................4-3
Drunken Driving.............................................4-4
Control of a Vehicle........................................4-6
Braking.........................................................4-7
Anti-Lock Brake System (ABS).........................4-8
Braking in Emergencies.................................4-10
Traction Control System (TCS).......................4-10
All-Wheel Drive (AWD) System.......................4-11
Steering......................................................4-11
Off-Road Recovery.......................................4-14
Passing.......................................................4-14
Loss of Control.............................................4-15
Operating Your All-Wheel-Drive Vehicle Off
Paved Roads............................................4-17Driving at Night............................................4-30
Driving in Rain and on Wet Roads..................4-31
City Driving..................................................4-34
Freeway Driving...........................................4-35
Before Leaving on a Long Trip.......................4-36
Highway Hypnosis........................................4-37
Hill and Mountain Roads................................4-38
Winter Driving..............................................4-40
If Your Vehicle is Stuck in Sand, Mud,
Ice or Snow..............................................4-44
Rocking Your Vehicle to Get It Out.................4-44
Recovery Hook.............................................4-45
Loading Your Vehicle....................................4-46
Towing..........................................................4-50
Towing Your Vehicle.....................................4-50
Recreational Vehicle Towing...........................4-50
Towing a Trailer...........................................4-55
Section 4 Driving Your Vehicle
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Vehicle Design
According to the U.S. Department of Transportation,
utility vehicles have a signicantly higher rollover
rate than other types of vehicles. Utility vehicles do
have higher ground clearance and a narrower track or
shorter wheelbase than passenger cars, to make
them more capable for off-road driving. Specic design
characteristics like these give the driver a better
view of the road, but also give utility vehicles a higher
center of gravity than other types of vehicles. This
means that you should not expect a utility vehicle to
handle the same way a vehicle with a lower center
of gravity, like a car, would in similar situations.
But driver behavior factors are far more often the cause
of a utility vehicle rollover than are environmental or
vehicle factors. Safe driver behavior and understanding
the environment in which you will be driving can help
avoid a rollover crash in any type of vehicle, including
utility vehicles.
Defensive Driving
The best advice anyone can give about driving is: Drive
defensively.
Please start with a very important safety device in your
vehicle: Buckle up. SeeSafety Belts: They Are for
Everyone on page 1-10.Defensive driving really means “be ready for anything.”
On city streets, rural roads, or freeways, it means
“always expect the unexpected.”
Assume that pedestrians or other drivers are going to
be careless and make mistakes. Anticipate what
they might do. Be ready for their mistakes.
Rear-end collisions are about the most preventable of
accidents. Yet they are common. Allow enough following
distance. It is the best defensive driving maneuver, in
both city and rural driving. You never know when
the vehicle in front of you is going to brake or turn
suddenly.
Defensive driving requires that a driver concentrate on
the driving task. Anything that distracts from the
driving task — such as concentrating on a cellular
telephone call, reading, or reaching for something on
the oor — makes proper defensive driving more difficult
and can even cause a collision, with resulting injury.
Ask a passenger to help do things like this, or pull off the
road in a safe place to do them yourself. These simple
defensive driving techniques could save your life.
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There is something else about drinking and driving that
many people do not know. Medical research shows
that alcohol in a person’s system can make crash
injuries worse, especially injuries to the brain, spinal
cord, or heart. This means that when anyone who has
been drinking — driver or passenger — is in a crash,
that person’s chance of being killed or permanently
disabled is higher than if the person had not been
drinking.
{CAUTION:
Drinking and then driving is very dangerous.
Your reexes, perceptions, attentiveness, and
judgment can be affected by even a small
amount of alcohol. You can have a serious — or
even fatal — collision if you drive after drinking.
Please do not drink and drive or ride with a
driver who has been drinking. Ride home in a
cab; or if you are with a group, designate a
driver who will not drink.
Control of a Vehicle
You have three systems that make your vehicle go
where you want it to go. They are the brakes, the
steering, and the accelerator. All three systems have to
do their work at the places where the tires meet
the road.
Sometimes, as when you are driving on snow or ice, it
is easy to ask more of those control systems than
the tires and road can provide. That means you can lose
control of your vehicle. SeeTraction Control System
(TCS) on page 4-10.
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Braking
Braking action involves perception time and
reaction time.
First, you have to decide to push on the brake pedal.
That is perception time. Then you have to bring up your
foot and do it. That is reaction time.
Average reaction time is about three-fourths of a
second. But that is only an average. It might be less
with one driver and as long as two or three seconds or
more with another. Age, physical condition, alertness,
coordination, and eyesight all play a part. So do alcohol,
drugs, and frustration. But even in three-fourths of a
second, a vehicle moving at 60 mph (100 km/h) travels
66 feet (20 m). That could be a lot of distance in an
emergency, so keeping enough space between
your vehicle and others is important.
And, of course, actual stopping distances vary greatly
with the surface of the road, whether it is pavement
or gravel; the condition of the road, whether it is
wet, dry, or icy; tire tread; the condition of your brakes;
the weight of the vehicle; and the amount of brake
force applied.Avoid needless heavy braking. Some people drive in
spurts — heavy acceleration followed by heavy
braking — rather than keeping pace with traffic. This is
a mistake. Your brakes may not have time to cool
between hard stops. Your brakes will wear out much
faster if you do a lot of heavy braking. If you keep pace
with the traffic and allow realistic following distances,
you will eliminate a lot of unnecessary braking.
That means better braking and longer brake life.
If your engine ever stops while you are driving, brake
normally but do not pump your brakes. If you do,
the pedal may get harder to push down. If your engine
stops, you will still have some power brake assist.
But you will use it when you brake. Once the power
assist is used up, it may take longer to stop and
the brake pedal will be harder to push.
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